The Advocate: A Schenectady sidewalk misunderstanding

Chris Churchil, Times Union

By Chris Churchill, The Advocate

Updated 7:43 am, Thursday, June 20, 2013

Shirley Gaylord stands on a driveway that has caused her to be fined by the city of Schenectady, which does not allow blacktop over concrete sidewalks. Gaylord believes the citation is unfair, in part because the Albany Street sidewalk does not continue on the adjoining property. (Skip Dickstein / Times Union)

Shirley Gaylord stands on a driveway that has caused her to be...

The city of Schenectady fined Shirley Gaylord for blacktopping over a concrete sidewalk and has ordered her to remove the asphalt within 10 days. Gaylord and her family believe the citation is unfair, in part because the Albany Street sidewalk does not continue on the adjoining property. (Photo by Chris Churchill / Times Union)

The city of Schenectady fined Shirley Gaylord for blacktopping over...

Shirley Gaylord had her driveway blacktopped seven years ago. The $50 fine from the city of Schenectady? That arrived this month.

It was more than a fine, actually. The letter from the city engineering department ordered Gaylord, 78, to remove the blacktop where it covers a concrete sidewalk within 10 days, and threatened court action if she didn't comply.

Now, if you've driven around Schenectady lately, you know that crumbling houses and apparent code violations aren't difficult to find. That's true even where Gaylord lives, in Woodlawn, a somewhat suburban area in the city's southeastern corner.

Yet Gaylord prides herself on the tidy appearance of the small Albany Street house where she's lived for 40 years. So why, of all people, did the city target her?

"I was a crazy person for three days after I got that notice," said Gaylord, who quickly called each of her four kids to complain about the fine. "I have a little bit of a temper once and awhile."

Sidewalks have been controversial in Schenectady in recent weeks, with the city reportedly targeting homeowners who have blacktop over concrete walkways. Gaylord assumed, then, that she had been caught in the crackdown.

And, yes, it's true that her ribbon of blacktop covers a portion of the sidewalk and is therefore a code violation. Homeowners in Schenectady are responsible for sidewalk maintenance, but the walkways can only be maintained as concrete, which is more resilient but also pricier than blacktop.

OK, fair enough. But you don't have to spend much time in Schenectady to see that the anti-blacktop rule is widely ignored. I even saw asphalt sidewalk alongside an elementary school and fire station.

Hmm, methinks I spoteth some hypocrisy.

There are other factors that make the fine assessed against Gaylord particularly unwarranted.

First, the work was done seven years ago. Second, the adjacent house doesn't even have a sidewalk, so it's hard to argue that her blacktopped driveway is an impediment to pedestrian travel.

"I just don't think that they're being fair with this business," said Gaylord, who called both the mayor's office and the engineering department to plead her case — to no avail.

"I can't see digging up what looks nice," she added. "And I don't know where I'm going to get the money."

I called City Hall on Gaylord's behalf, and spoke with City Engineer Chris Wallin. He quickly said Schenectady's sidewalk controversy is based on a misunderstanding of the effort.

The city, Wallin insisted, is not targeting previously installed asphalt sidewalks or driveways that cover portions of sidewalks.

Instead, the effort is about keeping homeowners from installing new blacktop over concrete sidewalks.

To accomplish that, the city is now requiring a permit — and a $50 charge — for sidewalk work. And when homeowners and contractors apply for the permission, the anti-asphalt rules will be clearly explained. (Just to be clear: Asphalt driveways are legal in Schenectady, so long as the blacktop doesn't cover the sidewalk.)

"I'm just trying to get to the point where homeowners and contractors know what the rules of the city are," Wallin said. "I didn't write (the law), and I didn't change it. I'm just trying to enforce it."

I certainly understand what Wallin is attempting to do. Sidewalks in Schenectady are a mismatched and somewhat dangerous mess, and the city is trying to establish uniformity. It's hard to argue against better sidewalks.

Of course, the best way to improve sidewalks is for the city to take over their repair and maintenance, as Albany does. (Caveat: Albany's maintenance doesn't include snow removal.) But cash-strapped Schenectady seems unlikely to take on new responsibilities, leaving the sidewalks in the care of homeowners who already pay some of the region's highest property taxes.

But wait, Wallin said the city is only targeting new blacktopping — and Gaylord's work doesn't meet that definition. Why, then, did she get fined?

Wallin said an inspector noticed Gaylord's driveway this spring because it was fenced off by protective orange tape, leading him to assume the blacktop was newly placed. Gaylord, however, said she only had the blacktop resealed.

What we seem to have here, folks, is a misunderstanding.

In fact, Wallin told me Gaylord's violation will be lifted if she has receipts or can otherwise show prove to the city that the work was merely a resealing. When I last spoke with Gaylord on Wednesday, that's exactly what she was planning to do.